Chapter ten-In the life boat

Rose awoke when she heard voices calling out from somewhere behind her, She wondered, briefly why she felt so terribly cold, but then, when she opened her eyes, it became clear why. She was still afloat on the door, and it was surely nearly dawn now. She felt the jacket Thomas had given her, it had, as he said it would, dried out a little. Thomas! Rose looked down to where he had been but he was not there. "Thomas!" She yelled, her voice hoarse. "Thomas!"
"Hark! Listen to that!"Lightoller stopped rowing, and stood up. "Hello!" He called. "Is anyone out there!"

"Anyone alive, you mean," Said one of the sailors bitterly

"Shut your face, I'm telling you, I heard someone,"

"Hello?" Called Rose when she heard him. "I'm over here, I'm over here!"

"Blimey!it's a woman! She's alive!" The group in lifeboat 13 quickly pulled alongside the door. "Please, let me help you in,"

Rose found she could barely move, she was so numb. Two men had to bodily lift her over into the lifeboat. It was almost empty, save two passengers who had clearly, like herself, been pulled from the water. She searched their faces in the half-light, but neither of them was Thomas. There were five members of the crew, obviously assigned to picking up survivors.

"Here, lass, take this," Said one Irishman, who had obviously been a stoker, judging by the black coal on his face. He handed Rose a blanket. "Just rest, lassie. That's the ticket. You're safe now,"

But Rose didn't want to lie down, not without Thomas beside her. "Have you found a man-I mean, mr Andrews?"

"No mam, but the life jackets only work a few hours, I think. The dead bodies sometimes sink, so-"He stopped, realizing what he just said.

Rose nodded in shock and horror. She had lived, had taken up all the room on the door, while Thomas had frozen to death! She lay back, and despite her guilt, exhaustion overtook her and she slept.

*************************************************************** Rose awoke. "It's about time, too, lassie." The kindly Irishman who had given her his blanket told her. You've been asleep 'nigh three hours, and in the meantime, we've got ourselves a rescue boat," He said, pointing in the distance, where Rose could see a large ship. "We're rowing for it now, we'll be one of the first lifeboats on board,"

As Rose looked around, she saw several lifeboats pulling towards it from many directions. All that was left of the Titanic were he tiny lifeboats. And all that was left of Thomas was his jacket that Rose was wearing, that she did not ever want to take off. In another fifteen minutes, they had pulled alongside the ship, whose name, Rose read of the side was the "Carpathia". A cheer went up from the occupants of boat 13, but not from Rose. What was life without Thomas?

There were rope ladders dangling from the side of the ship, and Lightoller climbed up first. He made it look easy, but Rose knew it would be difficult for her, she was freezing, and scared of heights.

"The lady next,"

Her turn. The men helped her to the side, where she shook them off, determined to do it herself. She had realized that Thomas had given up his life in order to save hers, and she wasn't going to die and make it all in vain. She heaved herself up the ladder, and climber over the other side, and presently fell, sprawled all over the deck. It started to rain, lightly, and Rose shivered, but was glad to feel solid deck beneath her feet again.

"This way, mam"A kindly attendant led her to put on some dry clothes, borrowed off other passengers, who were obviously sympathetic and kindly, and judging from the fine garments the stewardess put on Rose, they were from first class. Rose insisted on putting Thomas's jacket back on over the top, amid protests from the stewardess.

"But it's damp!" She cried.

Rose seized her roughly. "This is the only trace left of the man I love. I wear it,"

"Yes, mam,"The stewardess said and left, no doubt looking for less violent passengers to assist.

Rose strode out onto the deck again, not caring if it was raining, not caring about anything but the pain in her heart. She leant far over the stern of the ship, looking at the water chopping underneath the ship. She saw the reflection of a rainbow in the water, and looked up. The sun had again filled the sky, and a beautiful rainbow had taken the place of the clouds. "Go away," Rose said aloud. "This is no place for you, you're much too cheerful,"

"Rose?" A voice behind her made her jump and whip around. It was Thomas, Thomas was alive and on the Carpathia, ascending a ladder just feet away from her! She fairly flew across the distance between them.

Thomas could barely believe his eyes. His beautiful rose had survived! His feet couldn't keep up with his heart as he climbed that ladder. And then he was up and over the side of the ship, taking Rose into his arms, kissing her, holding her, as the crowd cheered. For the longest time, neither said anything.

"Where did you go Thomas?" She asked. "I feel asleep, then you were gone,"

"I passed out, and I guess, drifted away, and I got picked up by a lifeboat collecting bodies. I wasn't dead, though. I woke up on the boat surrounded by the dead. There were only three people on that life boat, rose, only three alive anyway." He took a step back and studied her face. "That was because of me Rose, don't you care?"

"it wasn't your fault," She said simply, and Thomas took her into his arms. "You're still wearing my jacket," He said.

"I never want to take it off," Breathed Rose.

Both were too engrossed in each other to notice the next passenger to come up from a lifeboat. It was Cal. Cal saw them. Cal was angry. Cal knew he would get his revenge. Cal always won.